The Caskett Wedding Chronicles
by CoffeeWithMyO2
Summary: A series of oneshots depicting the beautifully orchestrated chaos that will ultimately become the Caskett Wedding. Future Fic.
1. Chapter 1

"Sorry, sorry, sorry!"

Kate's brows furrow upon hearing the distant, though unmistakable, sound of Lanie's voice echoing throughout the hallway of the house.

The detective's eyes narrow as she briefly sticks her head out the door; extremely relieved to see her maid of honor practically flying up the stairs and into the master bedroom of the Hampton House.

"Finally," the detective thinks to herself with an annoyed sigh as she falls back down onto the bed, choosing to stay put instead of rushing to great the M.E. with open arms.

Beckett is absolutely furious at her maid of honor's disappearing act. She was supposed to arrive at the Hamptons over an hour ago, and Beckett only has exactly fifty-three minutes to be completely ready before the wedding starts.

Okay, so maybe she is already completely dressed; except her dress, of course.

And, maybe, she did not really want anyone to help her do her hair and makeup.

But she did not actually think that she wouldn't have any other option than to do it herself.

As the M.E.'s full appearance comes into view, Beckett's eyes widen; her anger instantly replaced by amusement. The slightly tousled hair, combined with the woman's dilated pupils, is more than enough to elicit a loud laugh from the detective. Lanie's face contorts into a terse glare at Kate's reaction, causing the detective to quickly place a hand over her mouth in attempt to suppress the overwhelming urge to laugh.

Upon regaining her composure the detective folds her arms across her chest, lips curving into a knowing smirk as she meets her friends gaze; eyebrows raised with an unasked question as she silently interrogates the M.E.

"Since when is it okay to interrogate your best friend?," Lanie defensively retorts as she takes in the detective's familiar stance.

Kate merely rolls her eyes at the woman's accusation. "Those sound like the words of someone with a guilty conscience," Beckett replies easily; her smirk growing wider as she narrows her eyes.

Brown eyes lock on green; both women refusing to move a muscle until the other surrenders.

The sound of a piano playing in the distance brings both women out of their stare down and back into reality.

"You're going to miss your wedding," Lanie says casually, in a slightly panicked tone of voice, hoping to deviate Kate's attention to something else, suddenly oblivious to the fact that neither woman is completely dressed.

"Really? That's the best you can come up with?" The detective chuckles at the M.E.'s failed attempt to redirect her attention, strategically ignoring the obvious discrepancy. "Last time I checked, the wedding can't exactly start without the _bride_," Beckett responds, punctuating her words with a teasing smirk.

The music continues to play softly in the background; though, neither woman moves.

Upon hearing the beginning notes of the wedding march, Lanie's eyes widen. She cannot understand why Kate refuses to let this go. "It's her wedding for goodness sake," Lanie thinks inwardly slowly beginning to feel her resolve break as she takes in the detective's stubborn expression.

_Finally_, Lanie relents.

"Okay, okay. Yes. It happened," she practically yells at Kate while simultaneously shoving the bouquet of flowers into her friend's hand, "I will _not_ be the reason you miss your wedding, Katherine Becket, now get out there!," Lanie finishes as jerks the detective off of the bed and roughly shoves her toward the door.

The detective's features contort into a sly smirk upon hearing Lanie's confession.

"Thanks for the help, Martha!" Beckett yells as she pokes her head out of the bedroom doorway. Her future mother-in-law is sitting at the downstairs piano with a cheeky smile on her face as she continues quietly running her hands over the white and black keys. The detective flashes the older woman a bright smile before calmly re-entering the room.

Lanie's eyes widen in realization at her friends words; her mouth falling agape as she struggles to form her thoughts into coherent speech. The M.E. groans loudly as she clumsily falls onto the bed, placing both arms across her eyes in embarrassment.

Beckett bursts into a fit of laughter at the M.E.'s reaction. She plops gracefully onto the bed next to Lanie, chuckling quietly for a few more seconds before attempting to regain her composure. The detective's eyes twinkle with curiosity as she nudges Lanie's hip with her elbow.

"So, you were saying?"


	2. Chapter 2

"You mean to tell me that you're over an_ hour_ late because you couldn't keep it in your pants?! You can't just go around having your way with members of the wedding party in a house full of people! Anyone could have walked in on you! Have you no self- control?!"

Castle's entire face is flushed red, his jaw set in a tight line. The writer can practically feel the blood boiling in his veins as he shoots a menacing glare in the detective's direction, practically growling his last words.

"Down, tiger," Espo says nonchalantly. "You're overreacting. No one saw anything!"

Esposito's overly confident grin falters only slightly as he calmly takes the lecture he is being given. He can't remember ever seeing the writer this angry; it almost seems out of character. He raises a brow in silent question as he examines Castle's expression.

Castle snickers at his friend's words, suddenly amused at his reaction.

"You think I'm overreacting? Just wait until Beckett gets a hold of you, Espo."

Javier's smug grin instantly falls back into place as he moves to lean up against the door frame, folding his arms across his chest in defiance, chuckling in amusement at Castle's words.

Castle rolls his eyes upon seeing the disbelief in the detective's eyes.

"Sure, you think it is funny now, but just wait. Keep in mind that you basically kept the bride's maid of honor _captive_ for an hour. _You _are the reason that Lanie is _late_, and Lanie is the _bride's _right hand. Because Lanie is late, _Beckett_ will now be late. When the _bride_ is late, the _wedding_ is late. And you and I both know how much Beckett _loathes _being late.

A quiet chuckle from across the room brings both the detective and writer out of their conversation as both men to turn toward the source of the noise.

"Uh, how long have you been sitting there, bro?" Esposito asks his partner in a tone of genuine surprise.

"Long enough to know that Beckett is going to kill you and make it look like an accident, Espo."

Kevin Ryan rises from the comfortable leather couch, chuckling quietly at Javier's defiance, as he walks toward his friends. Ryan shrugs and nods his head once in Castle's direction as he continues, silently gesturing that he agrees with the writer.

"You don't mess with the maid of honor or anything that could possibly be involved with the bride on her wedding day."

Castle repeatedly nods his head in agreement with Ryan; his eyes twinkling in victory as he watches the features on Esposito's face fade into an expression of acceptance.

Okay so maybe they are embellishing, but only just a _little. _

Castle knows how important this day is to his fiancee and is merely using her Beckett-like tendencies in order to keep everyone well-behaved. He knows that Kate would expect him to at least act a little bit upset toward Esposito, just as he knows that she would do the same to Lanie.

"_She probably won't kill him," _the writer thinks to himself as he watches Javier's expression, "_but that doesn't mean he can't be persuaded to think otherwise._"

As a man who does not fear much of anything, Esposito does not know what to think. Fear is not an option in his line of work.

"_We put away killers for a living," _he scoffs to himself, inwardly thinking about just how ridiculous this entire conversation is, as he narrows his eyes at his friends.

Although the detective may not openly admit it, the idea of an angry Beckett, with Javier Esposito on her radar, is just a little unsettling.

He has witnessed first-hand how _persuasive_ the detective can be in an interrogation room. She's taken men well over twice her size and slammed them into the ground on multiple occasions. Esposito doesn't doubt that Beckett could probably take him; though, that isn't something he would _ever _voice out loud.

* * *

A bright flash of lightening illuminating the dark sky, followed by a loud clap of thunder echoing throughout the house, abruptly brings the three men back into reality.

They quickly turn toward the window, each wearing an expression of bewilderment, as the rain begins to fall. Long gone was the bright, sunny, sky that they had been expected to be with them throughout the weekend.

"It wasn't supposed to rain," Castle manages to comment after a few moments of silence, swallowing thickly, as his eyes dart frantically between both of the detectives. The sight before him has rendered the writer completely speechless.

"Nope," Ryan comments in the same tone, giving Castle a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

Esposito remains gravely quiet, his posture even more rigid than usual, as he stares at the rapidly escalating storm. Castle and Ryan share a look of confusion before turning their attention towards him, not having any idea of what is going through his mind at this moment.

Ryan and Castle are even more surprised to see the look of defeat mixed with a hint of fear in his eyes as Esposito slowly turns his head to meet their inquiring expressions.

"Beckett's going to kill me," he mumbles to them as he returns his gaze to the storm.


	3. Chapter 3

_This can't be happening. _

_Rain wasn't even in the forecast. _

_Why the hell is it raining?! _

The detective's thoughts slowly begin to spiral out of control as she watches the unexpected storm wreak havoc across their beautiful piece of the beach; her brow furrows in confusion as she tries to wrap her mind around the absolute tragedy taking place right before her eyes. Kate's jaw drops as another flash of lightening illuminates the dark, grey sky, followed by a booming clap of thunder.

Today is supposed to be perfect. It is supposed to be filled with sunshine, rainbows, and all of the other ridiculously girly, princessy, clichés that she would never dare to voice out loud. The detective presses both hands to her temples, trying to soothe the impending tension headache, as she forces herself to turn away from the disaster happening through the window and begins frantically pacing through the room.

Kate anxiously chews at the inside of her cheek, continuing to pace around the room as desperately tries to come up with a way to solve the problem.

_Think, Kate. There's got to be a simple way to fix this. _

Kate groans in frustration as she carelessly flops down onto the bed, mumbling a creative string of expletives, as she simultaneously reaches for her phone on the bedside table. She brings the phone to life with a push of a button and can't prevent her lips from curving into a small smile upon noticing that she already has two missed calls and a text.

_**Weather will pass in about ten minutes. Mother is entertaining guests. It's all under control. See you soon, Mrs. Castle. xo **_

A wide, giddy, smile instantly replaces all traces of the doubt that was once plastered on the detective's face as she reads the message. She quickly types up a reply before setting her phone back down onto the bedside table and rising from the bed. Kate sneaks a glance out of the window, exhaling a loud sigh of relief upon noticing a glimmer of sunlight beginning to peek through the dark sky.

_Thank goodness that's over. _

The detective makes her way into the bathroom and quickly begins to apply finishing touches to her hair and makeup. Upon seeing that everything meets her approval, Kate exits the bathroom and makes her way over to the closet where her dress has been hanging for the last several hours. The detective smiles to herself as she runs her fingers across the fabric, beaming in excitement that their day is finally here. In less than an hour she will be married to the most amazing man in the entire world, and she could not be more ecstatic about it.

A loud commotion coming from somewhere downstairs instantly brings Kate out of her reverie. Allowing her curiosity to get the better of her, the detective opens the bedroom door just enough so that she is able to see what is happening outside. Kate's eyes widen, completely at a loss for words at what she is seeing.

Martha Rodgers, the one and only, is sitting at the piano next to Kate's elderly grandmother, as her mother-in-law plays a rendition of Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On; though, that isn't the best part. They are both singing, very loud and extremely off key, as Kate's infamous Aunt Teresa sways along to the music. The detective's jaw drops, practically to the floor, as she notices that her aunt has chosen a coat rack for her dancing partner and proceeds to dance around the living room just about bumping into anyone who happens to cross her path.

_Oh. My. God. _

Kate instantly closes the bedroom door and reaches for her phone, automatically pressing speed dial number two before pressing the device to her ear.

Castle's cheery voice echoes in her ears after the first ring.

"Are you listening to the chaos down stairs?"

The author's brow furrows in confusion as he tears his gaze from the window, realizing that he has been too preoccupied with the storm to really notice anything else. He crosses the room in three quick strides and opens the door just enough to be able to see, not wanting to bring any attention to himself.

"Oh my god," Castle laughs, unable to hide the amusement in his voice as he watches Aunt Teresa clumsily dance across their living room.

Kate grumbles her discontent through the phone at his amusement toward the situation as she leans up against the closed bedroom door.

"Make it stop," she practically begs through the phone upon hearing the music change to Dolly Parton's I Will Always Love You.

Castle winces upon hearing his mother hit a rather loud, and very off key, high note and nods rapidly into the phone, momentarily forgetting that Kate cannot see him.

"I'm on it. No worries."

Just before the author has a chance to exit the room something captures his attention, causing him to pause. Peering out the door once again, he notices that Kate's grandmother is wearing what appears to be wearing something quite unusual. His brow furrows in confusion as he tries to make sense of what he is seeing.

"Um, Kate, did you happen to notice what Nana is wearing?"

"No why would that…"

The detective's eyes widen in realization; a gasp leaves her lips as she places a hand over her eyes.

"Let me guess. It's a white, sort of old fashioned wedding gown?"

Castle nods into the phone, forgetting that Kate cannot see him. "That's the one."

Kate mumbles something under her breath before releasing an exasperated sigh into the phone. "This day just keeps getting better and better."

* * *

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!

More to come!

As always, feedback and reviews are most appreciated!

XOXO


	4. Chapter 4

"I'm guessing there is a story you haven't told me yet"

Castle's brow furrows in confusion at his future wife's reaction to her nana's ensemble. He takes one last glance at the scene playing out in their living room, grimacing as he hears the very last note of I Will Always Love you. Well, actually, Mother and Kate's grandmother hit some letter of the alphabet with that note but it certainly was not one on the musical scale; not even close.

Kate slowly sinks against the door frame and falls to the floor as she hears the current song selection come to a close.

"Is it over? Please tell me it is over?"

Castle peeks back out the open door once again in hopes to confirm that the torture has ended. He breathes an elongated sigh of relief upon watching his mother get up from the piano bench and walk toward another area of the house.

"Mother has left the piano."

Kate laughs dryly into the phone as she places a hand across her eyes before releasing a long, grateful sigh in relief at hearing the madness is finally over.

"Thank goodness."

Castle nods into the phone as he closes the bedroom door and makes his way back over to the window, grinning widely at the sunshine peeking out from behind the clouds; all traces of the miniature storm have finally disappeared. The wedding can happen.

"So, care to tell me why Nana has on an old wedding gown?"

Kate leans back against the closed door and nods into the phone, instantly chuckling when she remembers that Castle cannot see her.

"I don't really know what it is, to be honest. Whenever she gets invited to a wedding or even hears the word, she instantly thinks that it is hers. So, she pulls her wedding dress out of the back of her closet and puts it on. There isn't really anything we can do about it except just go with it. Nana does not like to be corrected. There really isn't anything we can do about it."

Castle sinks his teeth into his bottom lip in attempt to suppress the laugh building up in his throat because that is, without a doubt, the most ridiculous thing that he has ever heard and coming from Richard Castle, that says a lot.

"That's new."

Kate chuckles at her partner's reaction, knowing immediately that he is trying his hardest not to laugh.

"It's okay to laugh, babe. The whole concept really is ridiculous, especially since Papaw is still alive."

Rick vigorously nods through the phone as he listens to Kate's explanation.

"Exactly! If he was no longer with us, it could be taken as a really eccentric, but still very sweet, coping mechanism. But since he is still here, it's just a little…how do I say this nicely…"

"Ridiculous?"

Kate laughs as she finishes the thought for him, completely agreeing with his logic.

"Okay, babe, we should probably get off the phone so that I can finish getting ready. Otherwise, we aren't ever going to get married."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Maybe we can get on with the show before something else has a chance to happen."

Rick regrets his word choice as soon as it comes out of his mouth. The moment the words are uttered, he hears the soft sounds of the piano beginning to play once more. The writer groans into the phone as he walks across the room back toward the door where he opens it to get a better idea of what is in store for him this time.

"Perhaps I have spoken too soon."

Kate moans into the phone as the beginning notes of the familiar tune of Gloria Gaynor's I Will Survive echoes throughout the large house.

"Oh no. Please, not again. I love your mom, and Nana, and Aunt Teresa, but my nerves absolutely can not take any more of that."

Castle's eyes widen at the sight unfolding before him, and he suddenly finds himself very grateful that his bride-to-be is upstairs and does not have a direct view of what is taking place. His mother has reclaimed her place at the piano while Nana and Aunt Teresa are posing on opposite sides of the coat rack. All three women are wearing a pair of hot pink sparkly sunglasses and have elegantly patterned scarves around their necks as they begin to perform some very elaborate show.

"Kate, honey, whatever you do, do not open the door. It is in your best interest to stay put and get dressed. The boys and I will put an end to this madness. I'll send Lanie and Jenny upstairs to help you. I love you. See you soon!"

Kate has just enough time to mumble an "I love you too" before Castle hangs up the phone. Shaking her head, Kate rises to her feet and haphazardly tosses her cellphone onto the bed.

The detective in her can't help wanting to know what exactly is happening downstairs, but she knows that Castle and the boys have everything under control.

Tossing all of her concerns and inane worries aside, Kate sets her mind on finishing getting dressed. She glances at her reflection in the mirror and smiles brightly upon seeing that everything looks perfect. All that she has left to do is to put on the dress, and then she can marry her one and done.

A loud commotion coming from downstairs brings the detective out of her reverie. Kate's brow furrows as she tries to figure out what is causing the noise, but fails.

"What the hell is going on down there?"

With one last exasperated sigh, Kate practically stomps toward the door of the bedroom. She turns the doorknob and flings the door open, not even caring about the noise that it makes. The detective trudges down the hallway and turns the corner toward the stairs, mumbling incoherently to herself with each step. Just as she is about to depart down the steps, Kate glances down into the living room. Her eyes widen, mouth falling agape, at the sight before her.

Esposito is lying in the middle of the living room floor in the fettle position as her Nana repeatedly thwacks him with her cane. After clearing her mind of the initial shock, Kate sprints down the steps and into the crowd of people. Castle, Ryan, and her father are all trying their hardest to make her grandmother stop; however, none of them have the slightest idea of what to do and it is as if their words are only encouraging her.

Kate gently puts an arm on her grandmother's shoulder and offers the older woman a warm smile. Nana reacts instantly to the touch and abruptly turns her head to see who is there; her features instantly softening upon seeing her eldest great-grandchild. The woman instantly drops the cane, and wraps Kate into a warm embrace, beginning to ask her all kinds of questions about how she has been and what has been going on in her life. The younger woman breathes a deep sigh of relief and gestures at the men to grab the cane and falls into a pleasant conversation with her great grandmother. At this point, Kate is extremely grateful that she was enough of a distraction to deter her grandmother continuing her assault on Espo.

Seeing an opportunity, Martha and Aunt Teresa begin escorting guests out towards the patio area in hopes that a change of scenery may do them all a bit of good. Kate gives Nana one last hug before Jim offers to escort her outside where the others are. The remaining five check on Esposito, whose pride seems to be more wounded than anything, thankfully.

"What the hell happened down here?"

Kate's gaze darts around the group as she tries to wrap her mind around the fact that her grandmother actually attempted to beat up one of her partners.

"Remember how you said that Nana doesn't like to be corrected?" Castle replies a few seconds later as he meets Kate's confused gaze.

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with any of this?"

"Well, our friend Espo here made the mistake of telling Nana that today wasn't her wedding day and that it was ours."

"Yeah," Esposito chime in after a couple of seconds. His features have set into a hard line; it's almost as if he should be pouting. "Apparently she didn't like that very much and just started smacking me with the cane. I didn't want to hurt her, so I just sort of took it."

Kate sighs and rolls her eyes, still completely befuddled by what has just taken place. Her lips curve into an almost pout as she maneuvers her gaze to meet Castle's and takes both of his hands in her own.

"Okay, I think we've endured enough chaos and insanity for one day. Can I please finish getting ready so that we can get married already?

The rest of the group takes that as their cue to leave and disperse to their correct rooms in the house. Castle chuckles at Kate's adorable pout and presses a kiss to the crown of her head before gently nudging her in the direction of the stairs. Kate smiles at the kiss and gives his hands a gentle squeeze as she begins to make her way up the stairs.

"KATE!"

A loud scream, followed by both Lanie and Jenny shrieking her name causes Kate pause. Lanie appears at the top of the stairs. Her whole face screams panic. The way her eyes are almost bulging out of her head combined with the slight tremor of her bottom lip causes Kate's heart drop and her stomach to violently churn. It most certainly does not help when Jenny follows close behind Lanie with a similar look of panic on her own face.

Kate instinctively takes a step back. She winds one of her arms through Rick's, giving his hand a hard squeeze. Kate swallows, her throat suddenly extremely dry, and slowly maneuvers her head to meet Lanie's gaze.

"The dress is ruined."

* * *

And there you have it!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

As always, feedback/reviews are greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much for reading!


	5. Chapter 5

Kate's eyes widen and she immediately shakes her head, because this can't possibly be happening.

"I was only….It's still. But. No," she finally decides, vehemently shaking her head once more before abruptly pulling her hand from Castle's and quickly sprinting up the stairs. She doesn't believe them. It can't be ruined. She's only been out of the room for ten minutes and the dress was perfectly fine before she left.

She gently pushes past Lanie and Jenny, forcing her way back into the room. Kate's jaw drops, barely registering the feeling of hands being placed on her shoulders as her knees buckle.

"This can't be happening!" she exclaims, agitatedly waving her hands around for emphasis as she frantically begins to pace around the room. "I took the dress off of the hanger and was attempting to put it on whenever that," she pauses, gesturing down the stairs, "happened. I didn't have a chance to hang it back up, so I very carefully spread it out across the bed. I even closed the door. What the hell happened?" Kate demands, glancing back to her maid of honor for an explanation.

"Kate, sweetie…." Lanie begins, not really knowing what to say because she still isn't entirely too sure of what happened herself.

Before she has a chance to even attempt to offer up an explanation, Jenny startles everyone by eliciting a small shriek followed by a rather large jump backwards. Kate and Lanie exchange a look of confusion at the reaction before turning their attention to Jenny, moving over to where she is standing in hopes of trying to figure out just what the hell she is actually looking at.

Both women startle upon noticing movement up under the bed and the three share a mutual groan of discontent as the source of the movement finally makes itself known: an adorable, fluffy, white puppy pokes its head out from under the dust ruffle of the bed, panting happily before releasing a playful bark. The puppy quickly emerges from its place under the bed and happily prances back out of the room, leaving a trail of water and mud behind.

Kate mumbles something unintelligible under her breath before gracelessly sliding down onto the floor and slumping up against the nearest wall, a little more roughly than she intended, inadvertently banging her head up against the closet door. Cursing under her breath, the detective pulls her knees up to her chest and wraps her arms around them before burying her face into her lap.

"Get that stupid thing out of here," she half growls, haphazardly gesturing to the ruined dress.

The women share a knowing look before springing into action. Lanie darts out of the room and down the stairs to retrieve Castle while Jenny scoops up the dress and shoves it into the garment bag before dragging it out of the room.

That's how Castle finds Kate a few moments later.

He doesn't say a word as he clumsily plops down onto the floor in front of her, placing a hand on each of her shoulders and squeezing gently. A soft chuckle slips past his lips as she almost immediately crawls into his lap, burrowing her face into the crook of his neck. He slips his arms around her, holding her to him as he presses a kiss to the crown of her head and lightly rests his cheek against her temple, soothingly rubbing a hand across her back.

"You could just not wear anything; it'd save me the trouble of having to refrain from ripping something off of you later," he murmurs after a few moments, dipping his head to press a kiss to the spot just behind her ear, grinning against her skin upon feeling her swat at his chest. He affectionately brushes his nose across her jawline before pecking a kiss to her cheek.

"We'll figure something out, Kate," he assures with a nod of his head before gently bumping his nose against hers, "because I love you and there's no way in hell that either of us are leaving this place today without having the same last name."

Kate snorts out a laugh and gives a playful roll of her eyes at his actions before tilting her head up to capture his lips in a tender kiss. She tightens her grip around him and settles back into his arms as they pull apart; a smile illuminating her features as her eyes flutter closed, allowing him to anchor her.

"I love you too, ya know," she mumbles, lazily placing a kiss over his heart before snuggling back into his hold.

Castle grins and scoots around on the floor so that he can lean up against the wall, lightly trailing his fingers up and down her back, kissing the top of her head.

"Good news! We figured out the whole dress situation," Lanie says with an excited squeak as she barges back into the room a few moments later. "Well aren't you two adorable," she croons at the duo, laughing as Kate rolls her eyes.

"You fixed the dress?" Castle inquires curiously, glancing between Kate and Lanie.

"Sorry, Writer Boy, but there's no hope for that thing…or at least not here. Good news is that she does have something to wear."

Kate quirks a brow in response to Lanie's statement.

"I'll explain later. The sun is shining. Martha is entertaining the guests outside…far, far away from the piano. Nana's cane has been safely put away. Esposito and Ryan are currently giving the dog a bath, per the request of Aunt Teresa, it's a win-win because now Fluffy can't ruin anything else. Everything else is all set up. You're gonna be a Castle in no time," she assures, flashing the couple a smile.

A wide smile illuminates the detective's features, blowing out a deep breath of relief as she sinks further into Castle's embrace. Things finally seem to be working out in her favor. The pair thank Lanie, watching as she disappears out of the room and back down the stairs.

Kate opens her mouth to say something, but is immediately cut off by the sound of Castle's phone ringing. She tilts her head, quirking a brow at him, because everyone they know, for the most part, is here.

Shrugging his shoulders because he's just as confused about the call as she is, Castle swipes at the screen and places the phone at his ear.

Kate swallows thickly as she watches the myriad of emotions play out across her fiancé's features. She can tell something's up; she knows him too well.

"So, um, Jay can't make it. His son has the chicken pox and Ellie has never had them before; she can't take care of him. Long story short, we, uh, don't have a minister. "

"You have got to be kidding me."

* * *

Needless to say, my writing muse sort of vanished for a little while.

Life got in the way, but I'm back!

Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this and, as always, feedback is always greatly appreciated!


	6. Chapter 6

"Late maid of honor. Rain. Obnoxious entertainment. Nana being Nana. No dress. No minister," Kate recounts slowly, glancing back and forth between Castle and Lanie. "Are we just not supposed to get married or something?" she grumbles, slouching back against her partner and letting her head fall to his shoulder.

Castle sighs and presses a kiss to the crown of Kate's head, soothingly rubbing a hand across her back. "It's just a little bit of bad luck, okay? We'll figure this one out too."

"Yeah, anyone can get ordained to perform a ceremony online. Who better to perform a wedding ceremony than a family member or a close friend?" Lanie chimes in with a shrug, keeping her tone as worry free as possible.

"At this point it's all we have," Kate agrees on a sigh, the feeling of Castle's hand on her back causing her eyes to flutter closed, "but whom do we pick?"

"Say no more; I'll do it, problem solved," an excited voice rings out from the hall.

Rick and Kate share a look, not entirely sure how to respond to the voice.

"What other choice to do we have?" Rick quietly murmurs into Kate's ear so that only she can hear.

"As long as you're one hundred percent sure about this?" Kate whispers back, lifting her head just enough so that she can meet his eyes and nodding her approval.

"We'd love to have you officiate our wedding, Mother," Castle finally says with a smile.

The wide smile that illuminates Martha's features is all that the couple need to see in order to know that they've made the right choice, and she practically runs off immediately, promising them that their ceremony will start in exactly one hour, as planned.

"Okay, lovebirds, you heard the woman, we have an hour to get you both completely dressed and outside to get married. I hate to break up the little moment you guys have going on here, but you can continue to be sickeningly sweet after you're married," Lanie remarks before moving toward the door, ignoring Castle's frown and Kate's eye roll at her comments. "I'll be back in ten and Castle needs to be out of this room."

Kate snorts out a laugh at Lanie's words, shifting so that she can curl her arms around her fiancé's neck, affectionately toying with the short hairs at his nape. "Time to go, Babe."

"I really don't wanna," he whines, pouting pathetically and Kate laughs, smudging a kiss to the swell of his bottom lip.

"But you gotta," she murmurs, ruffling his hair before carefully smoothing it back into place and smearing a kiss to his forehead before pushing herself up off of his lap to stand, holding her hand out for his.

Castle relents, twining one of his hands with hers as he uses the other to haul himself up off of the floor, and slips an arm around her waist. "Fine, I'll go, but only because I have to."

The detective simply shakes her head and pushes up onto her tiptoes so that she can press a lingering kiss to his lips, grinning against him as her arms curl around his neck. "I love you," she murmurs with a smile, smacking another kiss to his mouth before reluctantly pulling away from him, gently shoving him toward the door. "Now, shoo."

Rick chuckles and shakes his head as he raises his hands in surrender, beginning to make his way to the door. He pauses, turning back to face his fiancée, and leans up against the doorframe, flashing Kate a wide, dopey smile. "I love you too. See you soon," he adds before heading out of the room and down the stairs.

Kate flops down onto the bed, shamelessly ogling her soon to be husband from afar, a content filled sigh slipping past her lips as he disappears out of her sight. In an hour and a few short minutes she'll officially be Mrs. Richard Castle. That thought alone is enough to break her face into a huge smile and reminds her that she still isn't completely dressed yet. She pushes herself up off of the bed and practically skips into the bathroom. Once she's there, Kate examines her face in the mirror before reaching for her makeup bag on the counter and beginning to apply finishing touches.

She's just finished applying the last coat of mascara when Lanie and Jenny re-enter the room holding a garment bag. Kate quirks a brow at the pair from the mirror, twisting the lid of the mascara back into place before turning around to face them. She observes quietly as Lanie holds up the bag while Jenny begins to unzip it, gently maneuvering the dress out of the bag. Kate's eyes widen, mouth falling agape, at the sight of her mother's wedding dress being held up in front of her.

Sure, the dress that she had originally chosen, the one that Matilda had sent her, was amazing, but Kate never really gave herself an opportunity to explore any other options. She never thought a dress like that would be something that she would be able to wear and it gave her tunnel vision, made her blind to anything else around her. She doesn't know how they got it here and she could slap herself for not thinking about wearing this dress in the first place, because now she can't picture herself in anything except this.

Kate swallows hard around the lump of emotion that has suddenly formed in her throat, willing the tears away, as she reaches out for the dress and gently, almost hesitantly, rubs a hand across the fabric.

"Dad's okay with this?" she asks, once she's properly able to form words again. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Kate knows she was wary, maybe even a little bit scared, about asking if she could wear her mother's dress. It just didn't seem right, almost as if she'd be taking a memory away from her dad, and she just couldn't do it.

"He insisted," Lanie assures, taking the garment bag and spreading it out across the bed.

Kate nods, not trusting her voice to hold before she wanders back into the bathroom to put the final touches on her hair. She glances at her reflection in the mirror for a few moments before turning her attention to the pair standing motionless in the room.

"You guys gonna help me, or do I have to do it all by myself?" she asks, quirking a brow in amusement as Lanie and Jenny practically run to her side.

* * *

"Gram? Dad and Kate are ready. Are you?" Alexis calls out from the hallway before walking into the study. The redhead's brows furrow upon realizing that the room is empty. She blows out a deep breath and plops down into the chair at her father's desk, letting her eyes close for a brief moment. The crazy, chaotic wedding day is almost over, thank goodness, because Alexis isn't sure that she can handle something else going wrong.

Alexis sighs, knowing that she needs to get moving again, and blindly pushes herself up from the chair, inadvertently grabbing onto a piece of paper left on the desk. She doesn't think anything about it, as she pushes the chair back into its place, skimming the paper's contents as she does, wanting to make sure that it isn't something pertinent to the wedding.

"_**We are gathered here today on this joyous occasion to celebrate the special love that Kate and Rick share." **_

Alexis face splits into a smile upon reading the first line and suddenly she's very grateful that she picked it up. "Gram must have left it behind whenever she disappeared to wherever it is that she's gone. She'll definitely want this back," she thinks to herself, grinning before going back to the rest.

"_**It is a love based on giving and receiving as well as having and sharing. And the love that they give and have is shared and received. And through this having and giving and sharing and receiving, we too can share and love and have... and receive. When I think of the love that these two givers and receivers share, I cannot help but envy the lifetime ahead of having and loving and giving…" **_

Alexis' smile gradually fades as she progresses through the rest of the page, vehemently shaking her head as she finishes the last line. "_This is ridiculous and cheesy and horrible and all kinds of wrong. Gram can't use this."_

Shaking her head once more, the redhead practically sprints out of the office, going off in search of her grandmother, desperately hoping to be able to talk some sense into the woman before the ceremony begins.

* * *

Tadaaaaa! :)

I have about 4 more chapters left before I wrap this up for good!

Updates will come once a week from now on until the story is finished.

Thanks to all who have stuck with me (and my very extremely sporadic updates)!

As always, feedback/reviews are greatly appreciated!

Thanks for reading!


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